SUCH A FOOL...

Chapter 3: Such a fool

5 years on……

Derek sat in his office operating on his system, his blue eyes pierced into his computer as he typed in words. Even as the AC cooled down, beads of sweat could still be found looming around his well structured face, making it obvious that he was In a hot seat.

As he worked, his office door cracked open, revealing Sofia, his now wife. She had a sweet smile on her face as she walked up to him and placed a light peck on his cheek. “You have been in this position since morning; wouldn’t you take a break? You need rest,” Sofia said softly as she took the seat opposite him.

Derek let out a smile before replying “I wish I could, but you see, no one can handle this business deal the way I can. We really need this deal, honey. Not only will it make us richer, but it will also give us more clients,” Derek explained, his eyes still fixed on the computer.

“Ok, I understand you perfectly well, but still, you need to stop stressing yourself so bad. Besides, we already have enough that would last our whole generation to come,” Sofia persisted, her aim being to stop her husband from working, she feels he deserved rest.

“Well, is that why you place less value on your company? Come on! You need to be focused on your company; you don’t have to follow me here each day, leaving your company in the hands of your manager every day. Who knows, she might be stealing from you,” Derek muttered, his eyes still dancing around his computer. His words were the last thing Sofia expected.

“Oh, come on! Don’t make this discussion about me now. And yes, my manager is taking good care of my company, so there is nothing to worry about,” Sofia hissed and stretched herself on the couch.

“Moreover, you should focus on giving me a child. We have been married for 5 years and yet have no children. My father is already on my neck, and he is not going to will his own company to me if I don’t give him a grandchild,” Derek spills out these words that left Sofia angry.

“Why do you always rub this on my face? Is it my fault that I can’t bear you children?” Sofia fired, her eyes filled with rage. Her composure has changed from calm to aggressive.

“Remember, we have gone to different hospitals, and they keep claiming that we are both ok, so why this?” She fired on, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. She is not happy that she could not bear a child either.

“I am not blaming you, baby; I am just frustrated, and Father isn’t taking it easy on me. I am sorry for putting the blame on you,” Derek replied, and for the first time, looked above his computer. His eyes held sadness as he stared at his wife, who was already wiping. He felt bad for her, and the last thing he wanted to do is put her in more pain.

“Why don’t we adopt?” Sofia suddenly suggested with a sparkle of hope, but it was cut short by Derek’s response. “Father said he wants my blood” his reply was straight to the point.

Sofia could feel her hope crumbling down on her, and she could also feel her world falling apart. How could life be so cruel to her? She wondered in sadness. Adoption was the only hope she had.

As she thought of the possibilities of remaining childless all her life, she felt tears build up in the corner of her eyes. This wasn’t the life she signed for; she wanted better.

“Don’t cry now, honey; I believe we will still have a child of our own,” Derek stuttered after noticing the tears building up in his wife’s eyes. He walked up to her and wiped off the tears from her side eyes.

“We will have a child soon, so don’t bother. I don’t want my wife to be sad because it breaks my heart,” Derek placed a soft peck”on Sofia’s forehead and watched in excitement as her cheeks flushed in joy. She had suddenly forgotten all her sorrow like he wanted. His kids always does the charm.

“You always have a way of making me happy,” the once sad Sofia chuckled in delight. “I am so glad you came into my life,” she added, blushing.

“And I……. Before Derek could complete his statement, when a loud chime from his phone alerted him to an incoming call. “Give me a minute,” he excused himself before picking up his call.

As he picked his phone and stared into the caller ID, his face flushed in disappointment as his eyes continued dancing around the caller ID. He already knew why the caller was calling, and he knew it meant no peace.

He took in a deep breath before picking up the call. “Hello, Mr. Alfred,” he said into the phone ready for all the troubles from the caller.

“If you don’t get this deal to click with the model overseas, then I will cut off my sponsorship, and not only that, Mr. Derek. I will also ask others to cut theirs,” Mr. Alfred screamed into the phone as soon as Derek picked it.

Derek could feel his heartbeat increase in panic as Mr. Alfred’s words hit him hard. Withdrawing his sponsorship would be a big blow to his face.

“No! You can’t terminate it,” he heard himself screaming. “I will make sure I get her to be the model, and I will do anything within my power to make sure she does,” he promised, even without knowing the model physically.

“You better do, or else you will regret it,” Mr. Alfred ended the call on his ears before he could force out another reply.

“Damn!” He cursed in frustration as the call went down. “How do I get a model I can’t even know to be a part of our upcoming project? This is frustrating,” he cursed, his hand tightened in a fist.